New York City / NY. (arc) Ark Restaurants Corporation reported financial results for the first quarter ended December 31, 2022. Total revenues for the 13 weeks ended December 31, 2022 were USD 47,445,000 versus USD 43,986,000 for the 13 weeks ended January 01, 2022.
The increase in revenues for the 13 weeks ended December 31, 2022 compared to the same period of last year was driven by increased customer traffic and targeted menu price increases in Las Vegas, New York and Washington, D.C. In addition, New York and Washington, D.C. benefited from strong revenues from our event business in the current period as compared to the prior year. These gains were partially offset by decreased revenues in Florida of 9.2 percent.
The Company’s Ebitda, excluding gains on the forgiveness of Paycheck Protection Program Loans and adjusted for other items all as set out in the table below, for the 13 weeks ended December 31, 2022 was USD 3,018,000 versus USD 3,946,000 for the 13 weeks ended January 1, 2022. Net income for the 13 weeks ended December 31, 2022 was USD 1,725,000 (which includes PPP Loan Forgiveness of USD 272,000), or USD 0.48 and USD 0.47 per basic and diluted share, respectively, compared to net income of USD 2,209,000 or USD 0.62 and USD 0.61 per basic and diluted share, respectively, for the 13 weeks ended January 1, 2022.
On February 8, 2023, the Board of Directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of USD 0.125 per share to be paid on March 14, 2023 to shareholders of record at the close of business on February 28, 2023. As of December 31, 2022, the Company had a cash balance of USD 19,427,000, a certificate of deposit in the amount of USD 5,044,000 (including accrued interest) and total outstanding debt of USD 21,675,000.
Covid-19 and Inflation
Recent global events, including the Covid-19 pandemic, have adversely affected global economies, disrupted global supply chains and labor force participation and created significant volatility and disruption of financial markets. As a result, we experienced significant and variable disruptions to our business as federal, state and local restrictions were mandated, among other remedial measures, to mitigate the spread of the Covid-19 virus. While restrictions on the type of permitted operating model and occupancy capacity may continue to change, during fiscal 2022 all of our restaurants operated with no restrictions, other than in New York City where customers were required to show proof of vaccination through November 1, 2022.
In addition to the associated impacts of Covid-19, our operating results have been impacted by geopolitical and other macroeconomic factors, leading to increased commodity and wage inflation and other increased costs. The ongoing effects of Covid-19 and its variants, along with other geopolitical and macroeconomic events, could lead to further government mandates, including but not limited to capacity restrictions, shifts in consumer behavior, wage inflation, staffing challenges, product and services cost inflation and disruptions in our supply chain. If these factors significantly impact our cash flow in the future, we may again implement mitigation actions such as suspending dividends, increasing borrowings or modifying our operating strategies. Some of these measures may have an adverse impact on our business, including possible impairments of assets.
